12.30.2011

I finally go to use my grandparents menorah...I grew up with it on the mantle at my parents house, and have so many great memories, it was really cool to have it at our house and start our own family tradition!

I did a bit of de-cluttering and re-arranging in the living room...Nothing like a freshly organized vignette to spruce up the living space!

I had a few VERY satisfying and productive days in the studio...My hair is at that "always in my face" stage these days and as I lean over my work on the bench I am in constant need of a bobby pin however they all seem to have disappeared!! Instead I reached for my favorite cap, courtesy of my talented friend Adam T. who just happens to be one of my favorite partners in NBA appreciation. Back when I lived in Seattle, we had a great crew of homies that loved to go to Sonics and Storm games together...Sadly the Sonics were stolen from our lovely city and moved to Oklahoma :( . This hat was made as a tribute to the team we loved and that was "plundered" from us and moved far far away. I'm sure nobody cares but if you do, and want to know more about the sadness that is a city with no NBA team, here is a link to a documentary on the subject.

In other studio related news I scored this vintage lamp for FREEEEEE, it still works, and I LOVE it!!! The base reminds me of all things Art-Deco and even the shapes and style of buildings like the Empire State Building. She's in pretty good condition, but does have a little bit of rust damage on the top/shade area. I need to investigate possible repair options, but I don't really want to have to re-paint the whole thing...Hmmmmm, the base has near perfect finish on it and a great steely grey/silver finish so I'm not ready to commit to painting over it yet.

I have been healing nicely the last week or so, getting out of the house more and pushing myself to do the "everyday" stuff of life...Such as going to the cell phone store with Jo, grocery shopping, lunching, and even a DATE!!!! This may not sound earth shattering to you, but let me tell you how good it feels after being nearly immobile for so long! I went to the grocery store the other day, with my cane in one hand and a shopping basket in the other...The place was bumpin', packed, busy, craziness and I am slow to say the least. I took my time and let everyone pass me by, I think having the cane makes people just a bit more patient and courteous. After a bit of shopping my basket was HEAVY, and my leg was killing me...but I SHALL OVERCOME, and finish my mission! I've never been so happy to get back to the car, I think I sat there and rested for a good five minutes before I drove off. Exhausting but totally rewarding, it's the little things of life that we take for granted...who knew buying vegetables could be so AWESOME!

In keeping with the vibe of feeling better and encouraging a return to "normal" life, I piled on the jewels and rocked this necklace party the other day. The earrings are RAD and hail from this beautiful lady on the other side of the ocean. The beaded orange and green number is a treasure I got while I was traveling in Israel, well actually in Egypt at a Bedouin village on the banks of the Red Sea...The Sinai peninsula is a vacation destination for many travelers in the middle east, and when one of my friends told stories of staying at thatched roof shacks on the beach for literally pennies a day, well I had to get in on that action!

About two hours over the border from Israels southernmost city Eilat is a barren land of half constructed beach resorts and various other construction projects that look like the crew took off for luch and never returned. There are sand dunes and mountains as far as the eye can see, and sprinkled along the shore of the Red Sea are these little "resort", and I use the tern loosely, villages. There are little thatchted roof sleeping shacks just a few yards from the ocean, compete with mosquito nets over the beds, (PS, you REALLY want to make sure that shit is closed up tight, they are ferocious!). The basic idea is that you are essentially in the middle of the desert, far, far away from everything, with lilttle to do but read, play backgammon and listen to some guitar music provided by whatever international hippy's happen to be sharing this space with you...I visited two different places like this on my travels, and they all have some sort of large palapa/thatched roof common area, all decked out like an opium den with pillows. rugs, and palm tree trunks layed out on the ground and covered with rugs kind of like a long backrest on the ground. Your time will likely be spent drinking icy melon juice blended with crushed ice, napping, reading, swimming, snorkeling, and lazeing around in great company.

One of the Arab worlds favorite pastimes is backgammon a.k.a "shesh besh", everyone plays it, so naturally I got a lesson from one of my fellow travelers and before I knew it we had tournaments going with some of the men in the village. Lounging by the Red Sea, playing backgammon and drinking the requisite sweet mint tea that is part of basic middle eastern hospitality, was so RAD, I really felt like I was having this amazing, so out of my normal world view experience...and that is exctly what I wanted! After we got settled in a few women and children in the village came out to show us some of their crafty goodness, I was immediatley drawn to this necklace and couldn't resist the combo of my two favorite colors! I have stared at this thing so many times over the years, dreaming of figuring out how to make one of these myself, I really need to get on it...Internet research and a lot of trial and error are on the horizin!

Sorry, that was a really long winded story of a necklace, but my memories are so clear of that day, and I LOVED my time there so much that I kind of feel like I got to relive some of it again by telling the story.

OK, getting back to that date we talked about before...Jo and I had a lovely late lunch thanks to a gift card she got for Christmas, then me mozied on over to the bar next door for cocktails and a bit of NBA appreciation.

Last but certainly not least is the lovely breakfast we had at home yesterday...Banana pancakes with bacon!!!! And that glowing jar of sunshine is homemade lilikoi (passion fruit) butter!! YUM!

I feel I'm ready for the new year, it can only bring good things after the past few months of struggle...I need to keep on myself to stay positive, focus on healing, and remember how lucky I am for all that I have, and that most definitely includes YOU!

12.21.2011

A few shots from around the house...and a few randoms!

Mom and Dad came to town to cheer me up and offer up a little extra TLC!

I must be feeling better, I've been taking pleasure in the small things...Such as taking pictures, and working on some jewelry projects in the studio! It feels great to be back in action...now I just need to keep my patience hat on for the rest of the healing process, keep stretching my leg, and stay positive!

I got some nice work done in the studio this week as well...I found myself making loops and links by the hundreds...well maybe not hundreds, but I made a TON!

They ended up in a trio of necklaces...

I've been experimenting with some new picture taking ideas, including actually using myself as a model for the necklace shots...I'm not usually a fan of myself in ANY pictures let alone ones that will be up on the internet for all to see, but I kind of like the way these turned out, and it's kind of cool for me to see my work and me in the same picture!!!!

This trio of neck adornments just found their way into the shop...It was really hard not to keep one for myself. I always say that I'll go back and make myself another of this or that favorite item, the reality is that I have so many ideas in my head I can rarely contain them, let alone put them aside for a while and duplicate something. These babies will be missed, but I hope they find just the right neck to decorate!

12.20.2011

There seems to be a lack of all things Jewish here in Hawaii...I am aware of this and know that I need to do my part and plan ahead for holiday traditions etc. Unfortunately I regretted to get on the Hanukkah candle band wagon quickly enough, and seem to have missed the boat! How is it possible that there are no candles for the menorah left on the island? It seems I will be constructing some sort of make shift menorah out of taper candles shoved into house plants...I'm thinking I'll line them up in the sideboard in the living room and just stick a few candles in, that ought to do it!

In other holiday celebration news, Jo busted out the mini tree last week and it has bee sitting sadly naked in the corner...today she lit it up, added some silvery swag and viola...

I took a bunch of pictures, and they all looked AWFUL...except these blurry ones!!! Something about them looks just right to me, I can almost smell the fireplace that we don't have. Christmastime in Hawaii is awesome for many reasons, but I have to say I wouldn't be too sad if I happened to be somewhere cold next year, celebrating in the cold, curled up with some hot cocoa by the fire!

12.13.2011

I just had to say that having my mom and dad here has been an amazing thing.

The emotional rollercoaster that I have been on since my accident seems to keep rolling down it's track, determined to make me feel so many things...the good, the bad, and especially the ugly. I have always been an emotional lady, everyone knows that about me, so you might think I would be accustomed to outbursts of tears and the semi-occaisonal bout of tearful sadness. The emotions and feelings that have come with this story seem to come on so fast, and sometimes I honestly don't know why I feel so down...which makes it much harder to communicate how I feel when Jo asks what's wrong and how she can help. And then just like that, after filling a few tissues with fluids, I'm back to me...a bit puffy around the eyes, but I feel much better having gotten it all out!

Being able to spend time with mom and dad has been such a great gift, of smiles, and laughter, and I think a lot of it just has to do with a change of routine and a distraction from my discomfort. After a solid 7 weeks of house arrest, It was a wonderful thing to drive over the mountains yesterday morning, and see the green, lush island gorgeousness!!!! Oh, how I've missed her!

It's been a busy few days of walking more that I have in months, and getting out of the house A LOT!!! Which is a great thing...It's quite exhausting though, and today I slept in very late, did much internet browsing, editing of jewelry photos and mini shop update. I think I just needed to have a little extra time off my leg today, and I'm feeling better already!

12.08.2011

After a long break from photo editing and blogging over the last 7 weeks, my eyes hurt from staring at the computer screen for so long! But it feels DAMN good to get some work done and put these babies out into the world. Like the others I'm not sure when they'll make their way to the shop...hopefully in the next few days!

In other happiness...My parents are coming to town tomorrow to offer me a bit of extra TLC!!!!! I am beyond excited to see them, spend some much needed quality time with them and Jo, and get back to living life on the islands as it should be. This will likely involve much driving around the island, watching some big wave surf on the North Shore, and many many moments spend eating raw fish and edamame from a cooler in the back of the car...AMEN SISTERS!!!!

Just had to throw that in there, when I was typing the title of this post it just popped in my head!

So far today, I swept the house, cleaned the bathroom floor and sink, put away some laundering, dusted a few surfaces, did some plant re-arranging, and a few other random house cleaning tasks! It is no small feat to tick of this list considering a little over a week ago I was still on two crutches...I graduate to one and am now working on getting around with none, and just a little bit of help from a cane now and then. Major improvements! Body, getting better...Now I really got work on the mind part.

With that in mind I took a few pictures this morning of some earrings that have been very patiently waiting their time to show off! I have another half dozen or so waiting for the battery to charge. I had some great company this morning while I took pictures, we listened to happy music, Bob Marley...While we chatted and I snapped away with the camera! Amazing what a few smiles and some back to normal activities can do for my soul these days!

Matte faceted chartreuse glass beads...what could be better than that?

These may or may not be spoken for already, I'm not sure they will make it to the shop or if a friend will be collecting them for sister and mom holiday gifts! I love it when friends want to pick something I made to give to their loved ones...Keeping it in the friendship family is so great!
If you are interested in anything you see here shoot me a message in the SHOP and I'll set them aside...I'm off to check the camera battery, drink some more tea, and have earring photo session #2.

Sierra Keylin Jewelry

Sierra Keylin Jewelry is built one piece at a time from my home studio in Honolulu. When I'm not making jewelry you'll probably find me at the beach with my dog, hunting down the best avocados on the island, drinking iced coffee, staring at waves, exploring hills and valleys, and taking in as much as I can of this crazy city on a rock in the middle of the ocean.